Before we all make fun of Oprah

[xmas74]

we might want to watch her show today. Sounds like a great episode about poverty in America. If she can get the message out to others who might not listen to us more power to her!

http://www.oprah.com/tows/slide/200510/20051012/slide_20051012_284_101.jhtml

[meganmonkey]

1. Dammit! I was just about to make fun of her, too

:P

[xmas74]

3. She's an easy target sometimes.

I do it too. But damn, this sounds like a good episode.
<snip>
"n order to take his children to school each morning, Steve sells his blood plasma, which gives him enough money to gas up the family car. He gets plasma taken twice every week—they'll pay him $20 for the first donation and $25 for the second."


No one should have to live like this to make sure their children get an education. No one.

[meganmonkey]

18. I wasn't really going to make fun of her,

I have nothing against her at all. I was just being goofy. :silly:

I saw the online clips of her in New Orleans and I was very impressed with her. I am not a big fan of TV in general, and daytime TV in specific, but I think that aside from being an entertainer, she uses her power for good for the most part :)

[Divameow77]

2. Why do people make fun of Oprah?

[xmas74]

5. They do.

Stick around and see.

[Initech]

6. Remember the first hour of Fight Club?

I liken the Oprahization of television to that - it started out great and looked good on paper. And then she ruined everything.

[xmas74]

8. She did alot of damage.

But this is a topic that she understands very well. She grew up very poor. I'd like to see where she goes w/ this today. I'll watch it.

[underpants]

Let's go back about 15 years

right when TV talk shows started going REALLY south (no more Donahues) Oprah says HOLD IT! We aren't going to go there.

She took her show UP and a lot of discussion and results with her.

I know you are really just joking about the Fight Club thing but we should remember that Oprah took the high road when she didn't have to.

[Initech]

26. Who said I was joking?

[Divameow77]

9. I guess people can think what they want of Oprah but

she's done more good for people then anyone here probably has.
Not to say that people here aren't charitable or have good hearts but does anybody here have the means to do the things she has?

I love Kathy Griffins Oprah comments, too funny.

[xmas74]

15. I like her overall.

There are shows that I disagree w/ but overall she tends to come through.
You'll learn that here on DU you cannot please all of the people all of the time.

[Initech]

25. Yeah, but thanks to Oprah....

I tend to look at it this way - Oprah created sentimental television. The local news is full of this crap now. So are a lot of major sports events (like last year's Olympics - 12 hours of coverage about sentimental bullshit, 2 hours of actual events).

[Telly Savalas]

4. She aint my cup o' tea...

but for a lot of folks she's a source of inspiration to make something more out of their lives.

Also, doesn't her book club often include some quality literature? Anybody who's promoting book reading deserves some props.

I think it's great that she's promoting the message.

[xmas74]

7. She has picked some great books

that few Americans would have read otherwise. I admit that I've read quite a bit of her list(I read anyway and thought I'd give it a shot. Many of her choices were wonderful surprises and made me think twice about her).
And I'm glad that someone is getting out the message that all is not well.

[underpants]

12. Not bashing but her books aren't that great according to some

my mother and her book club have given them several chances and are always disappointed. That being said, she has got people interested in reading again----at a baby shower back in the spring my mother was there and she really didn't know any of my mother-in-laws friends....so she sits down to eat at one table and someone asks what everyone esle is reading BAM! the conversation is off and running.

I like Oprah a lot, always have but I understand why people bash her (top of the mountain and all).

[xmas74]

19. I remember reading one of her books that everyone

around me bitched about-She's Come Undone. They hated everything in it yet got excited about talking about why they hated it(sexual confusion, child rape, divorce, obesity, mental illness, abortion, emotionally abusive relationships). It made me feel good just to hear someone discuss a book so heatedly.
A few of her books have been banned in areas now-Rapture of Cannan, Stones from the River(on quite a few banned lists), The Corrections, The Poisonwood Bible.

[SOteric]

10. I don't make fun of Oprah.

I respect her for the positive contribution she's made in the lives of millions, including giving her personal wealth to purchase AIDS medicines in Africa, and enlightening her millions of viewers to plight of women in countries which practice slavery, bride-pricing, and ritual clitoridectomy.

[xmas74]

13. Thank you!

But we've read the posts on here in the past.
I think this might be a very good episode. She's laying it all out that America is not the promised land that some like to pretend it is. People w/ no running water, selling plasma to pay for gas, no homes.
I hope that it helps someone out there understand what it is really like for some Americans.

[johnnie]

11. I wonder if she will be coming to interview me

Not long ago I was doing pretty good, in the last few years a lot of bills are sky-rocketing and my pay is staying the same. It won't be long before Oprah can do a story on me.

[Zomby Woof]

14. She is just too narcissistic for words

Somehow, she will make the issue all about her. *Extreme close-up of Oprah crying deep tears of grief*

Did you watch her body language in the New Orleans special? She acted compassionate with her words, but her body acted repulsed, and the hugs were very shallow and tentative. Musn't let these dirty people muss up my good clothes!

She will probably set back the cause of eliminating poverty with her show.

I don't need an egomaniacal multimillionaire lecturing me about the pain of poverty.

If she were serious, she would put homeless people on the cover of her next magazine issue, and allow all proceeds from the sales help build homes for them - every month!

But she is incapable of putting anyone but herself on that rag, so I will continue to mock and scorn her.

[underpants]

16. I have a question

What is the difference between "Non bleached" coffee filters and bleached???

I never have understood what the difference is (other than the bleaching) and I thought you would be the one to ask.

Oh by the way I completely disagree with you about Oprah but back to more important matters.

[Zomby Woof]

21. Bleached - the white ones

Non bleached - the brown ones.

Supposedly, the bleaching process affects the fibers of the filter, and therefore the taste. Others argue that the taste is the same, but bleaching is bad for the environment.

So if you want a remote chance at better tasting coffee and not adding bleach to the waste disposal system, buy the non-bleached filters.

Or even one of those gold reusable filters. I never tried one of those, though.


(I worked for a major bookseller when Oprah started her book club - don't get me started on how long it took her to LISTEN to us on how far in advance she should recommend a book so we could have sufficient inventory on hand. She HATED having those terms dictated, but when thousands of housewives pestered us for weeks on end waiting for her next selection - well, you come to hate Oprah. She was good for sales, but not for service. And there is the way she treated her staff when she came to town... *shudder*. There are LOTS of successful people I admire, she will never be one of them - so the mountain theory doesn't hold water with me, but yeah, the coffee filter question is more important.)

[underpants]

23. Okay I figured it was something like that

The only reason I use the filters is because they are cheaper than a 1/3 papertowel.

French Fries and packaging - that's where all the money is.

[Zomby Woof]

24. I heard babies aren't cheap, either

Unbleached diapers are the way to go. :o

[underpants]

27. Actually not too bad

There is a lot of set up cost but once you have the basics covered it is not too bad. Most all of the clothes were given to us (everyone seems to have boxes of baby clothes) and the showers took care of most of the hardware (thank you Cousin for the rocker chair) other than that it is some diapers and wipes (lots of wipes) and since we had over 500 diapers the day she was born we have only had to buy a couple more bags (we changed the type we like) and we have lots left over. Need some diapers? We gave some to a women's shelter and are about to clean out the overstock on everything and pass some of the clothes on and give some away.

The baby's food is basically free (THE BOOBIES!!!!).

[miss_kitty]

30. Bleach is bad for you too.

I think it's a carcinogen. If it's not, it should be. It does harm the environment and it makes your thingy smaller. ;)

[Divameow77]

17. I have read that it's not her choice

to have herself on the cover every month. I'm sure alot of people make decision like that for her.

I do agree that she seems egomaniacal and she does kiss major celebrity butt, but why should all the negative outweigh the good a person does.

[nini]

32. I doubt anyone makes decisions for her

her ego wouldn't allow that.


:-)

[nini]

20. weeee an Oprah thread!!!

:popcorn:


Where's Rabrrrrr????

I love that she does shows like this. She's in a position to educate the masses to the sad truth that is reality in the country and world.

My issue with her is the incessant 'look at what I am doing' that saturates her charitable actions. I wish she'd be more like Paul Newman and get stuff done but not have to scream to the world how wonderful she is because she does it. It comes off as so self serving it makes me want to barf. That is all.

[RedCloud]

22. Harpo? Go to Oprah! Go to Oprah! Go to Oprah!

[Fleshdancer]

28. I have a great amount of respect for Oprah

and it bothers me that so many DUers are quick to bash her because she had Arnold on her show. He was up against a porn star, a has-been child actor and a Governor that a lot of people in California didn't like. He would have won with or without that one appearance on Oprah.

Now that I got THAT off my chest...I am absolutely thrilled over what Oprah is doing to get wanted child sex offenders off the streets. One child rapist has already been caught with the help of viewers who saw Oprah's show and she gave them $100,000 for it. I go to her website to memorize the faces of the bastards who deserve to get caught. I have fantasies of putting someone away and donating the money to help victims of sexual abuse. How could anyone not respect her for this?

[miss_kitty]

29. I don't make fun of her

I think she's doing the best with her money and popularity that she can possibly do. People were on the board bitching she should get down to NOLA and spend millions, when she was already doing it-it just wasn't on her show yet.

People bitch about her being an attention whore, but really, it's her job to be out there. There's nothing whorish with what she does with her fame and popularity. IMHHO, anyway.

[ikojo]

31. Over 40 years ago there was a documentary on CBS about

poverty in the US. I have read that it was this documentary that galvanized the war on poverty of the late 1960s.

I just hope that just as Oprah and Anderson Cooper have discovered poverty that they continue to shine a light on the plight of the poor in the US. Most poor people work very hard for very low wages.

[Shell Beau]

33. I like Oprah, so I will not be making fun of her!

Go O!